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    When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreams: Hope for Today from 12 Women of the Bible
    When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreams: Hope for Today from 12 Women of the Bible
    When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreams: Hope for Today from 12 Women of the Bible
    Audiobook5 hours

    When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreams: Hope for Today from 12 Women of the Bible

    Written by Jill Eileen Smith

    Narrated by Sarah Zimmerman

    5/5

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    About this audiobook

    Life is full of twists and turns. Relationships falter, careers fizzle, health fades. We may be faced with choices we never wanted to make or have situations pushed upon us we'd never expected. Yet, in all of it, God is at our side--even when he feels far away. Drawing on her extensive research into women of the Old Testament, novelist Jill Eileen Smith turns her pen to the lessons in trusting God that we can learn today from women like - Eve - Noah's wife - Sarai - Hagar - Lot's wife - Rebekah - Rachel - and more Readers will learn from what these ancient women did right--and even what they did wrong--when faced with dashed expectations and deferred dreams. And they'll come away with the confidence that ours is a faithful God who loves us and is forming us through our trials into the women he longs for us to be.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherChristianAudio.com
    Release dateFeb 19, 2019
    ISBN9781545910306
    Author

    Jill Eileen Smith

    Jill Eileen Smith is the bestselling and award-winning author of the biblical fiction series The Wives of King David, Wives of the Patriarchs, and Daughters of the Promised Land, as well as The Heart of a King, Star of Persia: Esther's Story, Miriam's Song, The Prince and the Prodigal, and Daughter of Eden. She is also the author of the nonfiction books When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreams and She Walked Before Us. Her research has taken her from the Bible to Israel, and she particularly enjoys learning how women lived in biblical times. Jill lives with her family in Michigan. Learn more at www.JillEileenSmith.com.

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    Reviews for When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreams

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    • 5/5
      I have read several of this authors biblical fiction books about wives in the Bible. I enjoyed them and found I had a hard time putting them down. Most I read in one sitting. This new book When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreams is similar to her prior works but it contains so much more. I had this on my TBR list for awhile, and yet things happened that I was unable to get to it. I love it when God gives you just what you need, when you need it. That is what happened with Jill's novel. We learn so much from some of the most well know females mentioned in the Bible. Yet there are others we have heard very little about but have great life lessons as well. I enjoy Jill's wonderful since of wonder and creation. She has a way of making a location or setting come to life. I found that to be true throughout this book. Each character has her own little novella. From there, Jill takes us back to modern day to relate those object lessons to things in our own life. This is where I learned so much and God spoke to me about some things in my life. I found myself highlighting several pages in each chapter.One of the first and very important things that I was reminded of comes form this quote of Jill's.“Fear simply makes us cling too tightly to what isn't ours in the first place. Everything we have comes as a gift from our loving God. We get to enjoy these things for a time, but they do not belong to us. I needed to let go.” One more great thought and I will stop because I could go on and on.“We have a loving Shepherd who wants to rescue us. He gives us the picture of the Father who waits for the prodigal to return or the shepherd who searched the sills and fields for the pit where his lamb has fallen (emphases mine.) He is the one who isn't satisfied with ninety—nine sheep. I would recommend this book to every women to read. I received a copy from Revell Publishing through NetGalley. The opinions in this review are my own.
    • 5/5
      This is a nonfiction book that reads somewhat like a fiction book. I really enjoyed reading about the women of the Bible and what they might have thought when stuff was happening to them. This is very inspirational. I received a copy of this book from the author for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.
    • 5/5
      Jill Eileen Smith is usually associated with writing wonderful Christian fiction and now I can say that she also writes wonderful non-fiction. When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreams is a book about twelve real women who didn't have their dreams come true. These twelve Old Testament women were probably like many of us who once thought that our lives would be one way and then watched them as they became entirely different. It is through the stories of these Biblical women that we can recognize that our troubles can defeat us or they can make us stronger; we can continue to struggle by ourselves or we can turn it over to God and let him fight for us! Many of the women's names are familiar: Eve, Sarai (Sarah), Hagar, Rebekah, Rachel, Dinah and Leah. And then there is Noah's wife. Her name is never mentioned in Genesis 7 but Smith has given her the name of Adah for the purpose of this book. Others mentioned are Melah (Lot's wife), Aneksi, Tamar, and Zipporah. They all faced different problems but they all persevered.This book has twelve chapters that offer a biblical account titled If I Were.... and there are also sections titled In Our World, Imagine with Me, Ponder this, and Taking it Further. These sections allow us to consider how we might have handled the same situations and they also offer understanding and encouragement. It is apparent that Jill Eileen Smith devoted many hours to studying Bible scripture and her efforts have helped me gain new knowledge of these women. When Life Doesn't Match Your Dreams is very well-written and I think that this book would be a valuable resource for organized Bible Study classes. It truly does give "Hope for Today from 12 Women of the Bible".I received a complimentary copy of this book but I voluntarily chose to write this review.
    • 5/5
      "He doesn't withhold the fulfillment of our dreams to hurt us. Sometimes He delays our dreams to teach us to trust Him. We trust Him by surrendering those dreams into His care."I don't read much non-fiction. I read the Bible, some commentaries on the Bible, and the occasional books that we read for our church group gatherings. When Jill Eileen Smith released a "non-fiction" Christian living book based on 12 women of the Bible, I wasn't sure about the book but knew that the author would have wonderful, fresh insight into what lessons we can learn from these Biblical women. So I dove in. Wow, am I glad I did. The book is incredibly well-written, with the author's trademark writing style that flows so easily, engages from the first sentence, and leaves the reader pondering and praying long after the last page is read. Each chapter begins with "If I Were ___" that puts the reader in first person narrative into the heart of each woman. Then the chapter transitions into "In Our World" to put the same issue the Biblical woman wrestled with into our current day. The imaginative Biblical scene again comes to life in the next section entitled "Imagine with Me" where the author takes the reader further down in the Biblical woman's life and then the chapter concludes with a lesson learned (such as "From Regret to Freedom" and "From Duplicity to Trust") and points to ponder, as well as questions to take the lesson further. The book spans such well-known women like Eve, Sarai, Hagar, Rebekah, Rachel, and Leah but also focuses on the lesser known or celebrated women like Adah (Noah's wife), Melah (Lot's wife), Dinah, Aneksi (Potiphar's wife), Tamar, and Zipporah. No matter how or why life has derailed for each of these women, it is clear that God has been there through it all and there is always hope in Him.This is a book that will have you running to the store to buy for your sisters and friends. This is a book that will stay on my bookshelf for many years to come so that my daughters, when they are of age, can read and glean from the heartbreaking lessons written on the pages.I was given a copy of the book by Revell (Baker Publishing Group) and was under no obligation to post a favorable review. All comments and opinions are solely my own.
    • 4/5
      I have read a handful of books from this author. I am a fan of Jill's fiction books based on women of the Bible. This new book is not too different from those books on the fact that it does feature women of the Bible. However, Jill does provide readers a very in depth look into the lives of these women of the Bible and how their lives translate to present day. Jill really breaks down different aspects of each woman and relates it to how she would react. Than towards the end of each chapter, the author asks the reader to spend some time in mindful devotion thinking about how these women translate to our own lives. Some of the women's stories did resonate more with me. However, this does not mean that I did not take away something from each one. This book actually should be read and enjoyed more as a devotion guide. Not just to be read straight through but to take time to reflect. This book would make a good Bible study book.